US convergence giant Stoke sets up base in India

Bangalore, Feb 25: Stoke, Inc., a leading developer of multi-access convergence gateways for network operators, has announced the opening of its subsidiary Stoke Networks Private Limited, and the appointment of Ashim Roy as India Country Head.

This expansion builds on Stoke's recent momentum in India with an investment from Reliance Technology Ventures Limited (RTVL), which is associated with Reliance Communications, one of the fastest growing telecommunications companies in India. With India being one of the most rapidly developing markets in the world, Stoke will leverage its new presence to expand global development capabilities, and provide local support to network operators in the region. Stoke India will be located in Bangalore.

"Given the enormous global business opportunities for Stoke products, building upon our existing presence in India is imperative for our growth and aligns with our strategic relationship with Reliance. Ashim Roy has extensive experience in the telecommunications industry and proven leadership in the region. We're excited to have him join the Stoke team to help accelerate our momentum," said Stoke President and CEO Vikash Varma.

Gartner forecasts that the global telecommunications market will remain the single largest segment by revenues of the global information technology market, and that rising demand in emerging economies like Asia will be a major contributor to this growth.

FMC in particular is expected to create a market worth over 46 billion dollars by 2010 (Infonetics Research). To capitalize on this market opportunity, operators must reduce the number of discreet devices required at the network edge to lower costs and simplify the rapid transformation required to enable the mobile Internet.

"It is an exciting time to be joining the company. Stoke's multi-access solution is enabling operators worldwide to realize the economic benefits and competitive advantages of network convergence. Our new office in Bangalore will tap local talent to contribute to the company's continued growth and innovation. I look forward to leading this effort," said Roy, who has held senior management positions at several technology startups such as Comat Technologies, Integrated Telecom Technologies (PMC-Sierra) and global IT companies including Hughes Network Systems and Nortel.

His professional career spans Australia, Canada and USA. He has more than 20 years of product life-cycle development experience in telecommunications technologies including satellite communications, wireline and wireless networks.

ANI